Now that a Pennsylvania judge has rejected Jerry Sandusky's request for a new trial, the convicted child sex abuser and former Penn State football coach is running out of ways to avoid spending the rest of his life behind bars. 

Sandusky's lawyers were hoping to win a retrial by arguing that they didn't have enough time to prepare for the proceedings that ultimately found their client guilty on 45 counts ranging from rape to corruption of minors. But McKean County Senior Judge John M. Cleland ruled today that they had sufficient time to prepare for the trial. Cleland wrote in a 27-page order:

I do not think it can be said that either of the defendant’s trial counsel failed to test the prosecution’s case in a meaningful manner. The defendant’s attorneys subjected the commonwealth’s witnesses to meaningful and effective cross-examination, presented evidence for the defense and presented both a comprehensive opening statement and a clearly developed closing argument.

So it looks like Sandusky will serve out his 30-to-60 year sentence (effectively a life term for the 69-year-old inmate). Norris Gelman, one of Sandusky's defense attorneys, says he plans to file an appeal with the Superior Court within 30 days, renewing claims for a new trial. But he tells a local ABC station reporter, "It will be a full appellate brief and among the matters discussed will be the court's opinion," meaning the appeal will simply present a new judge with the same complaints.

Meanwhile, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett and a handful of state representatives are still suing the NCAA, which sanctioned Penn State with denial of football scholarships following the trial. 

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David Wagner